


Blown off

by Warna



Category: Justified
Genre: Explosions, Hurt/Comfort, Injury, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-26
Updated: 2021-01-26
Packaged: 2021-03-18 20:40:00
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,803
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28998396
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Warna/pseuds/Warna
Summary: A different take on 6x13What if Boyd's dynamite trick wasn't so harmless, and Tim was too close to a dynamite stick as it went off?
Relationships: Rachel Brooks/Tim Gutterson, Raylan Givens/Tim Gutterson
Kudos: 15





	Blown off

It was all happening so fast. Boyd was throwing explosives and they were all trying to get to him while also avoiding getting blasted to hell. Rachel was first in the advancing lines, with Tim right behind her. The sun was going down and all the smoke from the explosives was making it more difficult to see than she would have wanted. She knew that Boyd was ahead of them, throwing explosives, and it was all trees to his right that they could take cover behind. She also knew that just a few meters to his left there was the edge to the hill, and the fall into that particular hollar was quite steep. She knew he had to be careful, but she was so close! So close to getting Boyd behind bars, so close to being done with this case. She was tired of waiting and being patient. It was going to be now or never. It had to be now. It needed to be now.

But in all her determination, Rachel missed the explosive that fell a couple feet to her right. She was too focused on the target - so all-engulfed by it that he became sloppy with his caution. All that she heard was Tim yelling her name, and then she felt a push forward. She landed on her hands and knees just in time to hear the explosion behind her. Just in time to hear Tim’s scream. Just in time to turn around and see the younger marshal being thrown off the edge of the hill by the force of the explosion. Just in time to realize how close to home this was all starting to hit.  
Rachel yelled out Tim’s name as she watched the edge of the cliff hopelessly, hoping against hope that she would see him climb back up. But nothing happened. Nothing at all. For a few seconds, everything was silent, with no one saying a word. And then all the chaos started.

****

That absolute maniac was throwing dynamite at them. Fucking dynamite! Boyd was a lot of things, and Tim had to admit that resourceful was one of them. This didn’t stop them from advancing towards the cabin, trying to capture him, but Tim was starting to get a bad feeling about this. It was Rachel’s call to say if they should retreat, but she seemed far off, with a wild look in her eye, determined to get the mission done. It reminded his of Raylan a bit. All he could do was follow and make sure everyone was safe.

And then it happened. A stick of dynamite landed just a few feet away from Rachel, and she didn’t seem to notice it. Something happened inside Tim, it was like watching himself from the outside. He was pure instinct as he pushed Rachel away from the dynamite, seeing her land just as the explosion went off to his right. It was all so surreal - he felt himself being thrown into the air, and then hitting the ground hard. But instead of that being all, he felt himself starting to roll at an uncontrollable speed. His hands were trying to find something to hold onto, but there was nothing. And all of a sudden his chest hit a hard object and the whole world went black.

****

Rachel was running downhill followed by other marshals and medics. Everyone was yelling out Tim’s name, but there came no answer. “Dammit Tim, where are you?!” she muttered to herself.  
“Everyone, get here, we found him!” came a yell from further down. They must have already been 400m down the hill. If Tim really rolled all the way down, Rachel was too afraid to imagine what condition he might be in.

She ran down the hill and stopped dead in her tracks when she saw him. He was lying face down, with his chest against a tree. As the medics were turning him, she almost left out a small yelp when she saw how his entire face was covered in blood. There were so many gashes that she couldn’t even pinpoint to one main cause for the bleeding. His eyes were shut, and even in this state of unconsciousness he seemed to be in pain.  
“It looks like the tree broke his fall” one of the medics said. “He’s alive, but his breathing is shallow and his heart rate is low. We need to take him to the hospital now”.

****

Art and Raylan were just getting out of the car, when Art saw that Rachel was calling him.  
“Yeah?”  
“Art, we lost Boyd.”  
“Oh God dammit, how did that happen?”  
“He started throwing dynamite at us…”  
“Holy shit. Is anyone hurt?  
“Yes… Art, Tim is in the hospital. He’s in a bad way…”  
“Shit… Shit! Ok Rachel, I’m on my way”  
“What happened?” asked Raylan after Art hung up.  
“Boyd started throwing dynamite at them, and I think he got Tim. He’s in the hospital now, in critical condition”  
“God dammit Boyd” Raylan said as he was about to get back in the car with Art.  
“Raylan, wait..” Art said unexpectedly. “I know you care about Tim, but there’s nothing you can do that the doctors can’t…”  
“So what are you saying Art, that I should go about my business while my partner is in a hospital bed because of me?” Raylan asked, with a bit more anger in his voice than he had wanted.  
“Because of you, what do you mean because of you? Raylan, none of this is your fault. It’s all Boyd’s fault, so if you want to give Tim some justice, you will go after the person who hurt him in the first place” Art said in an authoritative voice.  
“I should have been there Art, I should have been by Tim and Rachel’s side, instead of going all vigilante by myself…”  
“And what? You would have prevent that dynamite stick from hurting Tim? With your invisible shield? Maybe both of you dumbasses would have been in the hospital then, instead of just one…” Art said with a slight smile. “Raylan, I know you’re concencerned, and so am I. Tim is a good guy, and he’s been through too much already. But this is our line of work, and it’s our duty to catch the bad guys. The guys that hurt us. The guys that hurt our partners. And you’re the only one who can do that right now Raylan. So do it for Tim… Besides, Tim is the toughest son of a bitch out there. I’m sure he’ll be fine, and back to being a sarcastic little shit in no time” Art ended with a reassuring smile. But by looking into his eyes, Raylan couldn’t tell which one of them needed that reassurance more.

****  
Raylan woke up in the hospital with a head wound. He was groggy and tired, but the first thought that popped into his head was Tim. Shit, how was Tim? The last he heard of him was that he was in critical condition at the hospital. He got out of bed and rushed into the hallway.

By the time he got to the nurses’ station he had worked himself up considerably.  
“Is deputy Marshal Gutterson here? Is he at this hospital? Where is he?”  
“I’m sorry sir, but you shouldn’t be out here wandering the hall..”  
“I’m deputy marshal Givens, and that’s my partner I’m asking about. Now is he here or not?!”  
“Raylan” said a familiar voice. He turned around to see Rachel. She looked like she hasn’t slept in weeks, and it was at that point that Raylan realised the toll that this entire case must be putting on her. How shitty that they had to stand in this situation before he realised how worn out they all were…  
“Rachel, where is he? What’s happening?”  
“He just got out of surgery, but hasn’t woken up yet.. you can come in and see him if you want..”  
“Yes… yes..”

Rachel led him down the hallway without saying another word. Raylan wanted to ask more questions, but he also didn’t know if he wanted to hear the answers. So he followed in silence, dreading what he was going to see more and more by the moment.   
Rachel stopped in front of a door, and stopped to look at him. Raylan took a deep breath and gave her a nod - and the door opened.  
Tim was laying in the white hospital bed. If the colour of his skin was the only indication of him being alive, Raylan would have thought he was dead. But the sounds of all the different machines and tubes that Tim was attached to gave him the comfort that he was still alive. Tim was shirtless, and had bandages around his chest, arm and head. And he was completely covered in scratches and cuts, on every part of his body that Raylan could see. The right side of his face and right arm were particularly bad, and had more deep scratches than the left. There was a particularly gruesome cut going all the way from Tim’s right collarbone to his right temple. It looked deep, and Raylan thought it could only be a miracle that Tim survived with such a cut without bleeding out.

“Rachel.. what happened?”  
Rachel took in a deep shaky breath before getting Raylan up to speed: “A dynamite stick landed very close to my right. I didn’t notice it in tim, and Tim pushed me out of the way of the explosion... but he didn’t have time to get out too. The explosion sent him off the edge of the hill, and we found him about 400m down, bent over the trunk of a tree. Looked like the tree broke his fall, but he still rolled down the hill for 400m... The big scar was most likely caused by the explosion, and the broken ribs from the impact with the tree. He hasn’t been conscious at all since we found him…”  
“What are the doctors saying..?”  
“They’re saying that the head wound is serious, and they don’t know when he’ll be regaining consciousness again..”  
“Fuck… Fuck fuck FUCK. This was not supposed to go down this way..”  
“I know… he saved my life Raylan. He has to wake up, he just has to..” Rachel said in a shaky voice, that threw Raylan off guard. Rachel never lost her composure.  
“He will, Rachel. And when he does, you will have your chance to yell at him for playing hero and putting himself in this situation” Rachel said, trying his best attempt at a smile as he looked at Rachel. But deep inside, he was just as scared as her.   
Looking back at Tim, he just looked so small. Raylan could have never imagined that this man, usually so imposing, could look so small and fragile. And young. Tim looked so young, way too young to have to be in this situation. If he wouldn’t have chosen to go after Boyd alone, he could have been there to protect him. Raylan wasn’t sure what he could have done to protect Tim from an explosive, but he couldn’t help the feeling that they wouldn’t be in this situation if he would have been there.

Art had barely made a sound since they got there. He was just standing at the foot of Tim’s bed and looking at his marshal. He seemed so far away, completely lost in thought, when he suddenly said “God dammit Tim, none of my people were supposed to he hurt today. Today was supposed to be a day of celebration… And I plan to still keep it that way. So you will wake up. Do you hear me Tim? You will wake up. And that’s an order!”.  
Raylan looked down at the boy, half-expecting to see his eyes opening at the order. But no, Tim’s eyes remained closed and his expression unchanged. There was nothing more to do at this point but wait.

******

It took two more days before Tim opened his eyes. When he did, the sight welcoming him was definitely heartwarming, and also quite funny. Tim could see from looking out the window that it was the dead of the night, so the fact that Raylan and Rachel were sleeping was understandable. However, the manner in which they were, Raylan looking like he was about to fall out of his chair and Rachel slouched over two chairs was quite a sight to behold. Tim looked at them for a bit, so happy to see them both alive and well. The moment didn’t last long though, since his dry mouth and lungs sent him into a coughing fit. The pain radiating from his chest was almost unbearable, making Tim believe he was about to lose consciousness again. 

The noise he was making also had the effect of waking up his partners, who raced to his side and held him down to prevent him from causing even more damage to his ribs. Raylan was yelling for a nurse, Rachel was trying to comfort him by telling him everything was going to be alright, and Tim couldn’t control the tears that kept streaming down his face. The nurses came in but there was nothing they could do until Tim stopped coughing. So they waited, and after a few more agonizing minutes the coughing subsided.  
“How are you feeling?” Rachel asked, and when he looked at her, Tim could see her eyes were glassy. He took in two more stabilizing breaths before he answered, not wanting to show how much pain he was really in.  
“Just peachy” Tim reassured her in a voice that was weaker than he had hoped for. He tried to put on a big smile for her, even though his chest and head felt like they were both on fire.  
“See Rachel, I told you he would be just fine. No need to worry” Raylan answered, and Tim gave him a good look.  
“Pretty bandages you’re sporting there Raylan - is it a new haircut?”  
“Why yes it is indeed - how do you like it?”  
“Well I guess nothing really goes with that face, so why the hell not?” Tim answered with a smirk.  
This made both Raylan and Rachel let out small chuckles, and they seemed relieved for the first time since he woke up.  
“So, what did I miss?” Tim asked with what he hoped was a smile, and not a grimace.  
“Oh, you’ll have plenty of time to get updated on that. First you need to tell us what made you want to roll 400m down a hill”  
“Ah, yes, I got a bit tired of the action so thought I could just make a swift escape” Tim managed to say before he started coughing again. The pain was unbearable, and a small part of him now actually wanted to lose consciousness again, so he wouldn’t have to endure it anymore. When he looked at his hand after he settled, he could see that he had coughed up blood.  
“I’m assuming I have damaged my lungs a bit in my escape?” he asked when he saw his partners looking at the blood on his hands.  
“Well, I guess that’s inevitable when you hit your chest in a tree after rolling down for 400m” Raylan said with nonchalance, but Tim could see the tension in his jaw muscles, and could see how much this was affecting him.  
“Options were scarce, bushes don’t really do the job” Tim answered, and then added “I’m sorry if I gave you guys a scare”.  
Raylan was taken aback by this statement. It was so unlike Tim to not take advantage of the situation and turn it all into a joke. “Yeah, you’d better not go on doing that again” was all he could muster to say.  
“Tim..” Rachel said, and Tim’s face turned towards her. She took a second to look at him, really look at every scratch and tear that his decision to save her had caused. Wishing she could take his pain away, as she could see his eyes beginning to close and his attention starting to falter. “Thank you for saving me Tim. I wouldn’t be standing here if it weren’t for you. I owe you my life. And thank you for not dying on me, or I would never have been able to live with myself”  
“Ah...” Tim replied, with a small smile, even as he was starting to drift out of consciousness again “... we’re fair and square as long as you get the next round of coffee”.  
“You’ve got yourself a deal” Rachel answered, as Tim drifted off to sleep, looking more peaceful than he had in the last couple of days.   
Everything was going to be alright.


End file.
